Muscle training apparatus capable of generating force

ABSTRACT

A muscle training apparatus capable of generating a force is disclosed. The muscle training apparatus includes a second support shell, a force-generating unit and an elastic covering unit. The second support shell is spherical and has a second containing space. The force-generating unit is disposed and fixed in the second containing space of the second supporting shell for generating a force. The elastic covering unit covers the second support shell to have a soft surface. The muscle training device can generate a force in a specific direction and intensity by the force-generating unit.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) on Patent Application No. 107134285 filed in Taiwan on Sep. 28,2018, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The invention relates to a training apparatus, in particular, to amuscle training apparatus capable of generating force.

2. Description of Related Art

Kegel exercise is a prescription-specified exercise for pregnant women.Its main purpose is to increase muscle tension by stretching thepubococcygeus of the pelvic floor, so as to make the pelvic floor beready for the physiological stress caused by late pregnancy andchildbirth.

The so-called Kegel ball was also developed by some practitioners totrain the pubococcygeus through placing steel balls inside it, so as toachieve the effect of Kegel exercise by use the Kegel ball only, orstrengthen the training effect by matching with the Kegel exercise.

The above-mentioned conventional Kegel ball has at least the followingshortcomings: first, after doing Kegel exercise or training with Kegelballs, users or even doctors usually cannot know the state of musclesand it is difficult to judge the results of the training; second, thefamiliar Kegel ball only uses the steel balls inside it to increase thebear load, however, the steel balls moves freely and as a result thetraining effect cannot be controlled.

Therefore, it is one of the important subject matter to develop a muscletraining apparatus that can generate controllable force and have themuscle strength testing function, so as to solve the problems above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing, the invention is to provide a muscle trainingapparatus capable of generating a controllable force to train thespecific muscle groups.

To achieve the above, a muscle training apparatus capable of generatinga force includes a second support shell, a force-generating unit and anelastic covering unit. The second support shell is spherical and has asecond containing space. The force-generating unit is arranged and fixedin the second containing space to generate a force. The elastic coveringunit covers the second support shell to make it have a soft surface. Bymeans of the force-generating unit, the muscle training apparatus cangenerate a force in specific direction and intensity.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein the elastic covering unit isan integrally formed silica gel.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein the force-generating unitincludes a gyroscope and a motor. The gyroscope has a rotor andgenerates force through the rotation of the rotor; and the motor isconnected with the rotor to drive it.

In one embodiment of the invention, the muscle training apparatusfurther includes a steering mechanism, which is arranged in the secondcontaining space and is connected between the force-generating unit andthe second support shell. The steering mechanism makes theforce-generating unit move relative to the second support shell. Inother embodiments, the steering mechanism may be connected between thegyroscope and the second support shell to enable the gyroscope to moverelative to the second support shell.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein the steering mechanism has afirst fixing part, a second fixing part and a pivot. The first fixingpart is connected to the second support shell; the second fixing part isconnected to the force-generating unit or the gyroscope, and the pivotis connected between the first fixing part and the second fixing part.

In one embodiment of the invention, the muscle training apparatusfurther includes a first support shell, a plurality of membranepressure-sensing units, an arithmetic processing unit and a signaltransmission unit. The first support shell is spherical and has a firstouter surface and a first containing space; the membranepressure-sensing units are respectively arranged on the first outersurface of the first support shell; the arithmetic processing unit isarranged in the first containing space of the first support shell and iselectrically connected with the membrane pressure-sensing unitsrespectively; and the signal transmission unit is arranged in the firstcontaining space of the first support shell and electrically connectedwith the arithmetic processing unit.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein the first support shell hasa first end and a second end, which are arranged opposite to each other.The first end is divided into four quadrants according to an axis, eachquadrant is provided with at least one membrane pressure-sensing unit.

In one embodiment of the invention, the muscle training apparatusfurther includes a power supply unit, which is arranged in the firstcontaining space of the first support shell or in the second containingspace of the second support shell to output a power supply.

In one embodiment of the invention, the muscle training apparatusfurther includes a circuit board, which is arranged in the firstcontaining space of the first support shell. The arithmetic processingunit, signal transmission unit or power supply unit are disposed andelectrically connected to the circuit board.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein the signal transmission unitis a wireless signal transmission unit.

In one embodiment of the invention, wherein one inner surface of theelastic covering unit is in contact with such membrane pressure-sensingunits.

The detailed technology and preferred embodiments implemented for thesubject invention are described in the following paragraphs accompanyingthe appended drawings for people skilled in this field to wellappreciate the features of the claimed invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The parts in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, theemphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principlesof at least one embodiment. In the drawings, like reference numeralsdesignate corresponding parts throughout the various diagrams, and allthe diagrams are schematic.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a muscletraining apparatus according to the first embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an explosion diagram showing a part of the muscle trainingapparatus.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the muscle training apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the circuit configuration of themuscle training apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a muscletraining apparatus according to the second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a muscletraining apparatus according to the third embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the force-generating unit arrangedin the second support shell of the third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the operation of the steeringmechanism of FIG. 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made to the drawings to describe various inventiveembodiments of the present disclosure in detail, wherein like numeralsrefer to like elements throughout.

Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2 to illustrate the muscle trainingapparatus according to the first embodiment of the invention. As shownin FIGS. 1 and 2, the muscle training apparatus 10 includes a firstsupport shell 11, a plurality of membrane pressure-sensing units 12, acircuit board 13, an arithmetic processing unit 14 and an elasticcovering unit 15.

The first support shell 11 has a first outer surface S01 and a firstcontaining space S02. In the embodiment, the first support shell 11 iselliptical spherical or egg-shaped, and has a first sub-shell 111 and asecond sub-shell 112, which can be joined together to form the firstsupport shell 11 with the first containing space S02. The first supportshell 11 may be made of materials with sufficient hardness andsupporting capacity like resin, polymer, ceramic or metal, etc.

The membrane pressure-sensing units 12 are arranged on the first outersurface S01 of the first support shell 11. Due to their flexibleness,the membrane pressure-sensing units 12 can fit to the outer surface S01of the first support shell 11. In the embodiment, the outer surface S01of the first support shell 11 has a plurality of setting areas (notshown in the figure), the number of which corresponds to the number ofthe membrane pressure-sensing units 12. The membrane pressure-sensingunits 12 can be fixed in the corresponding setting area with bondingglue.

Although the overall shape of the first support shell 11 is spherical,the setting area can be designed as planar so that the membranepressure-sensing units 12 can fit to it well and be fixed easily.

The first support shell 11 may also have at least one opening to connectthe first containing space S02 with its outside. The connecting wire ofthe membrane pressure-sensing units 12 can enter the first containingspace S02 through this opening.

The circuit board 13 is arranged in the first containing space S02 andfixed on the first support shell 11. The substrates of circuit board 13can be selected from ceramic, glass, resin or metal.

The arithmetic processing unit 14 is arranged on the circuit board 13and electrically connected with the membrane pressure-sensing units 12,so as to receive the signal output from the membrane pressure-sensingunits 12 for judging the strength of external pressure.

The elastic covering unit 15 is made of integrally formed silica gel andcovers the first support shell 11.

The first support shell 11 is elliptical, and it has opposite a firstend and a second end along the long axis of the ellipse. Referring toFIG. 3, there are four quadrants I-IV according to the long axis of theellipse as seen from the first end of the first support shell 11, andeach quadrant is provided with a membrane pressure-sensing unit. In theembodiment, for example, the membrane pressure-sensing unit 12-1 is setin quadrant I, the membrane pressure-sensing unit 12-2 is set inquadrant II, the membrane pressure-sensing unit 12-3 is set in quadrantIII, and the membrane pressure-sensing unit 12-4 is set in quadrant IV.Full quadrant data can be obtained with the membrane pressure-sensingunits 12-1 to 12-4 in four quadrants.

From above, the first end of the first support shell 11 will firstcontact with the muscle during the muscle training apparatus 10 entersthe pubococcygeus, so the membrane pressure-sensing units 12-1 to 12-4set at the first end will detect the pressure at this time, throughwhich the strength of the muscle can be known and the quantitative dataof muscle strength can be obtained.

Furthermore, the second end of the first support shell 11 could also beconfigured similar to that of the first end to have four membranepressure-sensing units 12. And, between the first end and the secondend, it is the area with largest circumference of the first supportshell 11, where four membrane pressure-sensing units 12 can be setaround. As mentioned above, by setting 12 membrane pressure-sensingunits 12 on the first support shell 11, the omnidirectional musclestrength can be detected.

Next, please also refer to FIGS. 2 and 4, FIG. 4 shows the circuit blockdiagram of the muscle training apparatus 10, which includes also astorage unit 16, a signal transmission unit 17, a power supply unit 18and a flexible circuit board 19.

The flexible circuit board 19 is electrically connected between themembrane pressure-sensing units 12 and the circuit board 13 so as totransmit the signals detected by the membrane pressure-sensing units 12.

The arithmetic processing unit 14 is electrically connected with themembrane pressure-sensing units 12, the storage unit 16 and the signaltransmission unit 17, respectively. The arithmetic processing unit 14is, for example, a microprocessor or a central processing unit (CPU), orother components with arithmetic processing capability to processinformation detected by the membrane pressure-sensing units 12, that isto convert the data format of the information detected by the membranepressure-sensing units 12, which could also be integrated with otherhealth or environmental information.

The storage unit 16 can store the information output by the arithmeticprocessing unit 14, which is to store the health and environmentalinformation corresponding to the muscle strength testing. The storageunit 16, for example, is a flash memory, or other volatile memory ornon-volatile memory, which is not restricted here.

The signal transmission unit 17 can be either a wired or a wireless one,which can transfer the information stored in the storage unit 16 toother electronic devices or receive information from outside. The wiredsignal transmission unit is, for example, USB, while the wireless oneis, for example, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. The signal transmission unit 17 cantransmit information such as test results to Cloud storage space, ormobile communication devices or computers installed with correspondingapplication programs.

The power supply unit 18 is electrically connected to the membranepressure-sensing units 12, the arithmetic processing unit 14, thestorage unit 16 and the signal transmission unit 17, respectively; andprovides power to each unit for their operation.

Therefore, the muscle training apparatus of the invention is arrangedwith a plurality of membrane pressure-sensing units based on the conceptof zoning detection to detect different zones independently, so as toobtain comprehensive testing data that is helpful to judge the resultsof muscle training. In addition, the test results can be transmitted tothe corresponding electronic devices in real time for users to interpretand then improve the practicability.

Next, please refer to FIG. 5 to illustrate the muscle training apparatusaccording to the second embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 5,the difference between the muscle training apparatus 20 and the muscletraining apparatus 10 of the abovementioned first embodiment is that theformer includes a second support shell 21, which is adjacent to thefirst support shell 11 and is covered in an elastic covering unit 22together with the first support shell.

Being similar to the first support shell 11, the second support shell 21is also elliptical spherical and has a second outer surface S11 and asecond containing space S12. The membrane pressure-sensing units 12 arearranged on the second outer surface S11 of the second support shell 21for muscle strength testing. Please also refer to aforesaid FIG. 2, themembrane pressure-sensing units 12 set on the second outer surface S11can be electrically connected with the arithmetic processing unit 14 inthe first support shell 11 through a flexible circuit board 23. Theflexible circuit board 23 can be wired first into the second containingspace S12 from the second outer surface S11 and pass through the secondsupport shell 21, finally enter the first containing space S02 of thefirst support shell 11 and then is electrically connected to the circuitboard 13. However, in other embodiments, the wiring mode is not limitedto this, and any way of electrical connection without hindering thecovering of the first support shell 11 and the second support shell 21by the elastic covering unit 22 is within the protection scope of theinvention.

By means of setting the membrane pressure-sensing units 12 on the firstouter surface S01 of the first support shell 11 and the second outersurface S11 of the second support shell 21, the testing area and rangecan be enlarged and more information can be obtained.

The following embodiments are illustrated based on FIGS. 2 and 4 inaddition to the corresponding diagrams. Please also refer to FIG. 6 toillustrate the muscle training apparatus of the third embodiment in theinvention. As shown in FIG. 6, the difference between the muscletraining apparatus 30 and the muscle training apparatus 20 of theabovementioned second embodiment is that the second outer surface of thesecond support shell 21 of the muscle training apparatus 30 is notprovided with the membrane pressure-sensing units, but the muscletraining apparatus 30 includes a force-generating unit 31.

The force-generating unit 31 is arranged in the second containing spaceS12 of the second support shell 21 to generate a force in a specificdirection. Also referring to FIG. 7, the force-generating unit 31 mayinclude a motor 311 and a gyroscope 312. The former is electricallyconnected with the power supply unit 18 to receive the correspondingdriving power, so as to drive a rotor 312 a of the gyroscope 312 torotate and generate the force corresponding to the earth gravity.

Then, referring to FIG. 8, the muscle training apparatus 30 alsoincludes a steering mechanism 32, which is connected to the gyroscope312 to change the tilt angle of the gyroscope so as to change themagnitude and/or direction of the force. The steering mechanism 32 has afirst fixing part 321, a second fixing part 322 and a pivot 323. Thefirst fixing part 321 is fixed to the second support shell 21, thesecond fixing part 322 is fixed to the gyroscope 312, and the pivot 323is connected between the first fixing part 321 and the second fixingpart 322. Through driving the pivot 323, relative position between thegyroscope 312 and the second support shell 21 can be changed. In otherembodiments, the pivot 323 can be uniaxial or multiaxial, or even360-degree universal rotation, which is not limited here.

And in other embodiments, the muscle training apparatus 30 may include acontrol unit (not shown in the figure), which is electrically connectedto motor 311 and the arithmetic processing unit 14, respectively. Thecontrol unit can control the speed of the motor by converting theinformation output by the arithmetic processing unit 14 into a controlsignal. Besides, the control unit can be electrically connected with adriving unit of the pivot 323 to control the steering angle of the pivot323.

In other embodiments, the muscle training apparatus may include aplurality of force-generating units, which can be set in the supportshell at different angles to generate forces in different directions andintensities, thereby adjusting the muscle training mode.

Moreover, in other embodiments, the power supply unit 18, the arithmeticprocessing unit 14, the storage unit 16, the signal transmission unit 17and the control unit can be selectively arranged in the first containingspace S02 of the first support shell 11, or the second containing spaceS12 of the second support shell 21, which is not limited here.

What is more, the first support shell 11 with the membrane pressuresensing units 12 and the second support shell 21 with theforce-generating unit 31 can be separated and used as individualcomponent.

In summary, the muscle training apparatus of the invention uses aplurality of membrane pressure sensing units arranged on the firstsupport shell and/or the second support shell for muscle strengthdetection. The omni-directional muscle pressure can be obtained throughthe membrane pressure sensing units distributed on the outer surface ofthe first support shell and/or the second support shell, and then beconverted to the corresponding muscle state by the arithmetic processingunit, so that the muscle strength can be known by users or doctors. Inaddition, the force-generating unit can generate forces in specificdirection and intensity to achieve the effect of training on specificmuscle groups.

Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of certain inventiveembodiments have been set out in the foregoing description, togetherwith details of the structures and functions of the embodiments, thedisclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in detail,especially in matters of arrangement of parts, within the principles ofthe present disclosure to the full extent indicated by the broad generalmeaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

What is claimed is:
 1. A muscle training apparatus capable of generatinga force, comprising: a second support shell, which is spherical and hasa second containing space; a force-generating unit, which is arrangedand fixed in the second containing space to generate a force; a steeringmechanism, which is arranged in the second containing space and isconnected between the force-generating unit and the second supportshell, and moving the force-generating unit relative to the secondsupport shell to change the magnitude and/or direction of the force; andan elastic covering unit, which covers the second support shell.
 2. Themuscle training apparatus of claim 1, wherein the elastic covering unitis an integrally formed silica gel.
 3. The muscle training apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein the force-generating unit comprising: a gyroscope,which has a rotor and generates force through the rotation of the rotor;and a motor, which is connected with the rotor of the gyroscope to drivethe rotor.
 4. The muscle training apparatus of claim 3, wherein thesteering mechanism is connected between the gyroscope and the secondsupport shell to move the gyroscope relative to the second supportshell.
 5. The muscle training apparatus of claim 1, wherein the steeringmechanism comprising: a first fixing part, which is connected to thesecond support shell; a second fixing part, which is connected to theforce-generating unit; and a pivot, which is connected between the firstfixing part and the second fixing part, wherein the force-generatingunit is moving relative to the second support shell.
 6. The muscletraining apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a power supply unit,which is arranged in the second containing space of the second supportshell to output a power supply.
 7. A muscle training apparatus capableof generating a force, comprising: a second support shell, which isspherical and has a second containing space; a force-generating unit,which is arranged and fixed in the second containing space to generate aforce; an elastic covering unit, which covers the second support shell;a first support shell, which is spherical and has a first outer surfaceand a first containing space; a plurality of membrane pressure sensingunits, which are respectively arranged on the first outer surface of thefirst support shell; an arithmetic processing unit, which is arranged inthe first containing space of the first support shell and iselectrically connected with the membrane pressure sensing units; and asignal transmission unit, which is arranged in the first containingspace of the first support shell and is electrically connected with thearithmetic processing unit.
 8. The muscle training apparatus of claim 7,further comprising: a power supply unit, which is arranged in the firstcontaining space of the first support shell to output a power supply. 9.The muscle training apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first supportshell has a first end and a second end, which are arranged opposite toeach other, the first end is divided into four quadrants according to anaxis, each quadrant is provided with at least one membrane pressuresensing unit.
 10. The muscle training apparatus of claim 7, wherein thesignal transmission unit is a wireless signal transmission unit.
 11. Themuscle training apparatus of claim 7, wherein the elastic covering unitfurther covers the first support shell.